ATHLETICS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 817, 14 May 1910, Page 10

ATHLETICS.

PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALLERS. THEIR STATUS IN OTHER SPORT.

(By "Mercury.")

Last week short reference was made to a matter of considerable importance in the Australasian athletic world, which is being made the subject of a mail vote among the various associations affiliated to the A.A.TI. The question that is to be voted upon l is whether or not a member of a professional football club is eligible to compete as an amateur othleto by tho rules governing amateurism. To thoso interested in amateur athletics the difficulty has been foreseen since the inauguration of League football in Australasia, but it was hoped locally that the question would not be raised, as the professional game seems to be in a more or less moribund condition in the Dominion. In New South Wales, however, it has assumed considerably proportions, a serious split between the two bodies governing amateur sports in. that State—the Amateur Sporting Federation and the Amateur Athletic Association— has resulted from a disagreement on tho point at issue.

The dispute has arisen thus: The federation has ruled that the New South Wales Rugby League is a professional body, and that any athlete joining a club affiliated 'to tho League, thereby professionalises himself. This,decision.was responsible for the demand "of "a prominent League official who was a/member of an amateur 'athletic club .that' the A.A.A." of New South' Wales should giro him "an offioial- ruling, as < to-the status. .', ■'•■•',-- Serving two Masters; . V';;: • ''/ '■■ The A.A.A. fought sby of tho difficulties ■ involved, and roferred tho case''to its . head body—tho Amateur, Athletic Union. of Australasia. The union conducted an exhaustive inquiry, at which the. protesting athlete, and his legal adviser,, wore present. The appellant handed in a statutory declaration, signed before a. magistrate, to tho.effect that'ho had never, at any time or under any. circumstances, infringed . the amateur code as laid down by tho union. . On this the chief executive ruled that, this being' so, the athlete had not forfeited his statns as an amateur runner. Thus the New South .Wales.A.A,A.'was placed in the position common to thoso who endeavour to serve two masters—it. had to decide either ■ for : one pr the other. . ; 'An' abortive, attempt at a . settlement was made at.a conference between' the officials of the. federation and the league, shortly after Which carao . the annual 'general meeting of tho A.A.A., and matItors were brought to a head by: the tabling of a motion that the association should secede ;f rom the federation. A' definite 'secession ' was only avoided' by a suggestion from theohairman, Mr. R. that the A.A.TJ. be'asked to take a mail' vote of the affiliated associations oh the point. Thus is New Zealand drawn'into, the fray. The local council will have to cast its vote one way or another, ami as stated here last week some deep thinking will be necessary. ■. Briefly, the kernel of tho niatten, then, is that whereas the' federation' has decided that a person who belongs to a league football club is not an amateur, the N.S.W.A.A.A., borne up by the decision of the union, has'ruled that, if he has not received remuneration for playing, and has not otherwise transgressed against the accepted amateur code, he may still retain his status as an amateur. The Amateur Rule on "Games."

The section of the rules governing amateurism upon which the question turns is that referring to "games," which runs: "Amateurs shall not lose their status by competing with or against professionals in any game for which no money prize is offered. In.the attached list of games included in this clause football is specifically mentioned. Thon arises tho question as to what is meant by a money prize being offered as applied to the financial arrangements of a/"professional football match. Whether or not any remuneration is accepted has no bearing on the matter, the question appears to bo: is any money prize offered to a'.participant in a professional football match? Another point is as to whether a membor of a professional' club, who is not an actual player is affected, but strictly according to law this appears to bo not so. Apparently a jman must compete to be affected.

Thus it seems it is not simply a mat-1 ter of a straight yes or no. The associa-1 tions, Or some of them, may decide that while a plaj-or has forfeited his status, a non-player connected with the league has not dono 60, which would further complicate matters. ' ' ■ As things stand now the position is that if the vote goes in favour of tho federation outright, the trouble will subside, but if it goes directly contrariwise then tho N.S.W.A.A.A. will secede from the Sporting Federation. For "Clocking" Races. Says an exchange:—"A well-known firm of Genova watchmakers have recently constructed a stop-watch which registers tho tenths of seconds. • Hitherto ,the smallest fraction of timo registered by any timcpieoo has been tho fifth of a second, and it. was commonly thought that'smaller divisions could not bo marked, owing to tho .excessively sensitive, mechanism that would be required. The watch which registers these' tiny fractions of timo'is fitted .with tho anchor escapement, and it can, be controlled either by hand or by electricity. It has been thoroughly tested, and tho experimenters have shown that its registration is perfectly accurate. If tho watch becomes used universally in tho timing of athletes a few records will probably soon • po by the board by a tenth of a eccond." Our contemporary is decidedly behind the times. Watches graded in' sixteenths of seconds have been in use for sonic time. These were made for timing whippet races, and wero brought under notice for athletes by Mr. Itufo Naylor. Jack'' Donaldson's recent sensational performance in South Africa, under Mr. Navi lor's management, wore all clocked with these timepiece?. ' . A race designed by its promoters tho Marathon Championship of Noir South

Wales, will bo held at Newton, Sydned on the King's Birthday (Friday. June 3). Tho distance is 2G miles 385 yds. Tho first prize is valued at ,£lO, plus a £3 39. medal;, the second at .£5 and a medal; the third at £3; tho fourth at £2, and a medal for each competitor finishing within 30miu. of tho winner. Old Country Long-Distanco Men. Though tho Old Country is much in need of good sprinting talent among her present-day amateurs there can bo no doubt that her long-distance men are right up in 'the first grade. Last week reference was made by "Mercury" to tho good mile and , threc-milo performances put up at the Oxford v. Cambridge mecfcing. Later files to hand bring news of another good three-mile run at the Queen's Park Harriers' .meeting a week later. The occasion was a match between A. E. Wood, the winner, of tho recent international cross-country championship, and A. G. Hill, a. young runner, who lias been working his way to the, front lately. The "Sportsman"" say's that "in the course of a magnificent struggle the men weTe never more than two yards apart, and after a desperato finish all down tho straight Wood finally proved succesfui by less than a foot. Tho times at different stages were:—Ono mile, Wood 4min. 27 2-ssec.; two miles, Hill Omin. -56 2-ssec; three miles, Wood 14min..43 2-5. sec." The excellence of this performance can be ganged from the fact _ that the Australasian record for the distance is Hmin. 49sec., to the credit of W. F. Simpson. '.„,., Another big meeting noted in English files just to hand was the Geneva A.A. gathering at Stamford Bridge. This is an annual trades meeting, and excites great interest, and draws immense fields. The total number of entries received totalled no fewer than 996, and the racing took place from 12.30 till 6.30 to dispose of. As an instance, the report shows that the half-mils was run in four heats, the first five in each starting in the final, which was won off -10 yards in lmin. 56 2-ssec. The "gate" amounted to nearly 9000, and' the programme included a tug-of-war for restaurant employees, and a half-mile walk for waitresos, in addition to the ordinary running and cycling events. On this occasion a scratch three miles was won 15min. l-sscc., and the mile handicap of 135 yards in 4min. losec. T , The Canadian amateur onampion, John Tait. established new figures for H miles in March at Madison Squaro Garden, New York, when he defeated tho crack IrishrAmerican, George Bonhag. in a special match in Omin'. 52sec. The previous record 6min. 57sec, was held by Bonhag.'